TCL L40FHDF12TA (photos)
The TCL L40FHDF12TA is a cheap television that provides a usable picture, but that's about it.
Overview
Though it's a mouthful to say, the TCL L40FHDF12TA enjoys a reputation among Internet shoppers--namely at Amazon, where it's been one of the best-selling TVs on the site so far this year--as an inexpensive television that provides a "cheap and cheerful" picture. After testing, we can confirm that the TV does perform above what you'd expect for the money, but that's not saying much. It has a deceptively "dark" picture that is actually the result of some artificial tampering to make the black levels looks better than they actually are. In essence, you'll never be able to get any usable shadow detail out of this TV, and colors, though initially exciting, are unnatural.
But we've tested plenty of TVs that perform worse than this model, and they were much more expensive than the TCL. We'd never recommend this as your primary TV, but it could make a decent bedroom set or for use in a guest house.